Zachary Alan Duke is a former left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball who played in the big leagues from 2005-2017. Over his 13 season career, Duke became a well-traveled veteran, making stops with the Pittsburgh Pirates, Arizona Diamondbacks, St. Louis Cardinals, Milwaukee Brewers, Chicago White Sox, Minnesota Twins, and Los Angeles Dodgers organizations. While he was never an All-Star, Duke had a long MLB career thanks to his durability and ability to eat innings out of the bullpen. He remains one of the more prominent pitchers of his era to be featured on baseball cards.
Duke’s rookie cards came in 2005 after being selected by the Pirates in the 1st round of the 2001 MLB Draft. Some of the notable rookie cards featuring Duke include 2005 Bowman, 2005 Donruss, and 2005 Topps baseball cards. These early issue cards showcase Duke during his debut season with the Pirates where he made 25 appearances, including 12 starts, and posted a 4.82 ERA over 94.1 innings pitched in 2005. It was an inauspicious beginning statistically but the rookie cards marked Duke’s arrival in the big leagues and are still sought after by collectors today.
In the following years, Duke established himself as a reliable mid-rotation starter for the Pirates. His 2006 Topps, 2007 Topps, and 2008 Topps base cards depict him during this time as a mainstay in the Pittsburgh rotation. The 2006 card in particular shows growth from his rookie season, reflecting Duke’s 3.91 ERA and 179 strikeouts over 183.1 innings in 2006. Upper deck released parallels and inserts of Duke in 2006-2008 sets as well to keep up with his development as a rotation piece. Duke’s success with the Pirates led to several prominent young star cards in sets like 2007 Topps Tiffany and 2008 Topps Total during his arbitration years.
After being non-tendered by the Pirates following the 2009 season, Duke latched on with the Diamondbacks for 2010. He appeared in a career-high 32 games that season while posting a respectable 4.00 ERA in relief and as a spot starter. Duke’s 2010 Topps and Upper Deck cards highlight this period of transition as he adapted to a bullpen role. He followed it up with a strong 2011 campaign, putting up a 3.38 ERA in 83 appearances out of the D-Backs pen. Upper Deck released several parallels and inserts in 2011 featuring Duke in an Arizona uniform after two solid seasons with the club.
Entering his arbitration years, Duke accepted salary arbitration from the St. Louis Cardinals for the 2012 season. He delivered with career-bests in games (80), innings (104), and strikeouts (86) primarily serving as a setup man. 2012 Topps Update and later Allen & Ginter releases featured Duke in a Cardinals uniform. He performed adequately again in 2013, re-establishing himself as a durable reliever before hitting free agency that offseason. Upper Deck produced several inserts highlighting Duke’s contributions to the Cards playoff-contending teams in 2012-2013.
After short stints with the Brewers and White Sox to kick off 2014, Duke latched on with the Twins and enjoyed a career renaissance. He posted a 1.90 ERA in 55 appearances for Minnesota that year and was called upon to pitch in high leverage spots late in games. Several manufacturers, including Topps Update, produced parallel and insert varieties in 2014-2015 sets to signify Duke’s solid season and important bullpen role. The Twins opted not to tender Duke a contract after 2015 and he moved on to stints with the Dodgers and back with the Brewers in 2016-2017 before retiring. Later base cards like 2016 Topps Heritage and 2017 Topps Update captured Duke finishing out his career.
While Zach Duke never achieved major individual accolades in his career, he appeared in over 600 games across 13 MLB seasons with 9 different organizations, a reflection of his durability and adaptable skillset as both a starter and reliever. His baseball cards from his debut in 2005 through the tail end of his career in 2017 depict Duke’s evolution from young starter to crafty veteran reliever. Even after retirement, collectors still seek out earlier rookie cards and parallels highlighting Duke’s sustained big league tenure making him one of the more prominent pitchers represented in baseball card sets from the mid-2000s through the 2010s.
